Designed, developed, and tested by Supervalu pharmacists and technicians, ARx introduces new technologies such as prescription label imaging and thermal printing. The application also features process enhancements, including a fully integrated electronic prescribing, or e-prescribing, module that provides a safer, more efficient method for prescription delivery.

"Supervalu Pharmacies is committed to the concept of empowering our pharmacy teams to provide convenient, personalized pharmacy care," said Supervalu Pharmacies president Chris Dimos. "By equipping our pharmacies with the innovative technologies included in ARx, we are providing our pharmacists with greater opportunity to apply their expertise as medication experts and develop creative solutions to common health conditions."

Design and testing of the system prototype began in October 2004. Further testing and development in large-volume pharmacies took place in 2006. Companywide implementation and "live" usage of the new system took place in phases, beginning in 2007.

"Full deployment of ARx is a very exciting and significant milestone for Supervalu Pharmacies," noted Randy Mound, v.p., Supervalu pharmacy systems and process redesign. "By moving to ARx, we are successfully implementing a common platform for reporting, business operations, and pharmacy workflow which will enable Supervalu pharmacists to better fulfill our customers' changing and diverse needs."

Mound said customers are already benefiting from many of the features of ARx, whose new computer application prints both patient medication vial labels and patient information sheets using large text, making it easy for patients to read important details about their prescriptions and medical conditions. Patients can also easily reorder prescriptions, check refill status, and verify pharmacy hours, using ARx's 24-hour telephone refill system. The system further places important counseling information and prescription history at the fingertips of Supervalu pharmacists.